Problematic Alcohol Use Among Adolescents in Germany: Representative Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Alcohol is a widely used psychoactive substance, and its use constitutes a major public health challenge due to its immediate and long-term adverse effects on various health-related outcomes. Adolescence has been identified as a particularly vulnerable phase regarding alcohol use. Although consumption rates in this age group have declined in Germany over the past decades, a plateau has been reached, and there is a continued need for interventions to further reduce consumption rates. Objective: This study aimed to assess problematic alcohol use among adolescents in Germany and explore associations with sociodemographic and psychosocial characteristics, particularly with health literacy, to inform future interventions tailored to the specific needs of this target group. Methods: In a cross-sectional quota-based survey, 2006 adolescents (aged 12-17 years) completed an online survey (n=1406) or face-to-face interview (n=600) assessing the frequency of weekly alcohol use, the presence of problematic alcohol use (German version of the Car-, Relax-, Alone-, Forget-, Friends-, Trouble-questionnaire [CRAFFT-d]), sociodemographic information, and health literacy (European Health Literacy Survey instrument [HLS-EU-Q16]). Based on their CRAFFT-d and HLS-EU-Q16 scores, participants were identified as exhibiting problematic alcohol use (vs no problematic alcohol use) and inadequate or problematic health literacy levels (vs adequate health literacy levels), respectively. Chi-square tests were computed to analyze differences between different groups (as defined by the sociodemographic factors, weekly alcohol consumption frequency, and health literacy) in terms of problematic alcohol use (binary CRAFFT-d outcome). Results: Approximately 20% (390/2006) of the participants reported consuming alcohol on at least 1 day per week, and 12.7% (255/2006) of the sample met the CRAFFT-d screening criterion for problematic alcohol use. Problematic alcohol use was significantly associated with gender (χ21=20.96, V=0.10; P